Life in the Dark
by grey within black
Summary: War, its repercussions, and what it takes to make Draco Malfoy believe. Very slight HarryxDraco


Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor do I own the song "Believe" from Yellowcard.

Warning: Mild slash/shounen-ai. Draco/Harry

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_Think about the love inside the strength of heart_

_Think about the heroes saving life in the dark_

"No! Harry, don't go back in there! It's too dangerous!" Hermione grabbed at his arm, her face smudged with blood and dirt, her eyes pleading, "Harry, if you die," She faltered, then spoke again," If you die, then all hope for the wizarding world dies with you!"

Harry stared at his best friend in disbelief before he grabbed her and turned her around to face the school that seemed to be caving in on itself, "Those are our classmates in there, 'Mione! People we've lived with, talked with, and seen daily for six years! Just because they had the misfortune to not be born with this," He jabbed at his forehead, "Then it's okay for them to die? No, I can't allow that."

Flinging the brunette away from him, he sprinted back to the castle, whipping his wand out as he went.

Hermione stood where he left her, and began to cry, terrible dread weighing her heart down.

An hour later, there was a whole group of students standing with her. He had saved them all, sending them to the haven Dumbledore had created. But Harry hadn't come back.

The feeling of dread grew.

---------------------------------

_Climbing higher through the fire, time was running out_

_Never knowing you were going to be coming down alive_

_But you still came back for me_

_You were strong and you believed_

Draco strode through the halls of Hogwarts, reveling in its downfall, laughing at the carnage and pain around him.He sighed in slight irritation as the blood spattering from a Hufflepuff ruined his good blue shirt.

He was about to wipe it away when he was abruptly shoved against the wall.

Something hit him in the chest, knocking him backward and onto the floor. Turning around, ready to spit scathing words at whoever it was who had bumped him, Draco was shocked to see red. The red of blood, the red of life, the red was coming from someone like himself, a human being. How can there be so much?! His horrified gaze traveled up from the knife buried in the chest to meet the emerald gaze of Harry Potter.

"P-potter?" Draco felt horror clawing at him at the travesty before him. The Golden Hero, blood gushing from his lips, saving his enemy.

"I guess I'm not-" Harry dragged a shallow, rattling, breath through his fast failing lungs, "-the only one who wants to kill you."

"Potter! No! You can't do this to us! You can't!" Draco's hands clutched at the blood-drenched hero, holding him to his chest, as if somehow his mortal arms can keep the blood from coming out.

"You're crying for me." Surprise registered in his voice, and Harry gently traced the path of the tears with one finger. A wracking cough shook through his body and Harry crumpled against Draco, his head on Draco's chest.

Leaning heavily on Draco, Harry struggled to sit up, struggled for one more breath. He took out his wand and pointed it at Draco, choking out the Banishment spell.

Draco could feel a Portkey-like pull under his belly button. His hands grabbed at Harry's, holding on to Harry's hand and the hilt of the knife, "Harry!"

Harry smiled, a bloodstained smile, but a genuine one nonetheless. "Don't worry. Everything is gonna be all right."

The life was quickly fading from the eyes of his sworn enemy. "Be-- strong," A pained gasp, "Be--lieve..."

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Be strong. Believe._

_Be strong. Believe._

And Draco was whisked away.

--------------------------------

_Never fearing, only hearing voices calling out_

_Let it all go, the life that you know, just to bring them down alive_

_And you still came back for me_

_You were strong and you believed_

"Malfoy? Malfoy!" Someone shook the blond roughly. No response. When Hermione let go of his shoulders, he simply fell over and continued to stare, with glassy eyes into nothingness.

Hermione stared at the blood staining her hands then knelt in front of Malfoy, her hand outstretched, "Is this your blood?"

He mutely shook his head.

"Who's is it?" She asked, fear making her throat close, forcing her words to come out a squeak.

Draco traced a lightning scar on his forehead. Tears trickled slowly down his cheeks, landing in his lap, turning the blood red into a washed out pink.

"H-harry? It's-- Harry's?" Her voice shook.

Draco ignored her, rubbing the cold steel of the knife he had pulled away with him on his cheek, his lips silently repeating one thing over and over.

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Be strong. Believe._

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Everything is gonna be alright_

Everybody cried that day.

_Be strong. Believe._

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_Think about the chance I never had to say_

_Thank you for giving up your life that day_

"What do you mean, we can't have a funeral for him?!" Hermione cried out in disbelief, "We can't leave his body in there!"

"I'm afraid we'll have to," Dumbledore said gravely, "We have no time. We have to stop Voldemort at all costs, as soon as possible. To do otherwise would be to belittle Harry's life."

Hermione shook her head wordlessly, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"But--" A voice, soft and childlike in its bewilderment. "But. I have to thank him. I have to say goodbye--"

Draco Malfoy looked at Dumbledore, hair stained red with firelight.

At the forbidding look on Dumbledore's face and a shake of the headmaster's head, Draco repeated, still bewildered, "I have to...!" Involuntarily his hand lifted and his index finger stroked his cheek.

"I'm sorry, Mr Malfoy. Hogwarts is now Voldemort's headquarters; we cannot go back in there until we're ready. Then, and only then can we retrieve his body."

Resolve hardening his features, tears still coursing down his flushed cheeks, Draco clenched his fist. "We'll be ready soon."

We will, he vowed to his savior.

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_Want to make a change right here right now_

_Want to live a life like you somehow_

_Want to make your sacrifice worthwhile_

"What's in your head, boy? Of course you'll join the Death Eaters!" Lucius glared at his son with steely grey eyes.

Draco spoke calmly, ice covering the fire of his father's anger, "No, I won't be. And if I did, it would be as a spy.Don't make the mistake of trusting me."

He never saw the fist coming toward him, all he knew was a blinding pain throbbing in his head, stinging skin where Lucius had hit him. He sneered, "Resorting to Muggle fighting?"

"Get out!" Narcissa pleaded with Draco, struggling to hold back her husband. "Before he really hurts you!"

Draco nodded gratefully at his mother, then turned around and left. He took no possesions with him, none of his things were worth the time. As he strode away from his home, his family, Harry's voice spoke those words to him again, "Everything's gonna be all right. Be strong--believe."

Draco began to live on only a few hours of sleep, not noticing the time slipping away as he mapped out plans of infiltration, trained in phsical and magical combat, and was invariably part of any rescue efforts. He should have died from the strain he was putting his mind, body, and soul through, but he wouldn't-couldn't let himself.

Not yet.

Not until it was over.

His strength of will was all that held him up in those last desperate days of battle. He battled fiercely, and --though skilled-- sustained many wounds. Even then, he wouldn't let himself stop, wouldn't allow death to take him. At last, he confronted Voldemort on his own.

When he saw Draco, Voldemort threw his head back and laughed, "They send you to finish me off?"

He stood up, still laughing, and explained conversationally, a mocking sneer playing around his thin lips. "When I was resurrected, I took many precautions into account. I made a potion," He eyed the dark, robed figure before him, waiting for a response that never came.

He continued, "Well, since you're so eager-" He placed a sarcastic emphasis on eager, "To know what I'm talking about--" Here he paused again. Still no reaction, "This potion makes me invincible from the likes of you. How, you ask? It nullifies all magical effects, including the killing curse." He smirked, waiting for the gasp of horror, waiting for him to try to kill him. He was a mere boy, after all. He couldn't hurt the all-powerful Dark Lord Voldemort.

Draco muttered something, and drew out from his cloak a blood stained knife. "I don't need magic," He smirked.

The knife was thrown, the tip of it gleaming dully through the blood, whirring toward the Dark Lord, burying itself in his chest.

Draco watched silently as the wizard dropped to the ground, taking great panting gulps of air, his lifeblood seeping into the ground. He didn't move as the wizard coughed out his last, dying breaths. He didn't blink as the wizard became still. Silently, tears began to fall from his eyes, reminding him of Harry's last, gentle touch.

They found him there, perfectly still and crying.

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_Again today, we take into our hearts and minds those who_

_perished on this site one year ago, and also those who came_

_to toil in the rubble to bring order out of chaos, to help us_

_make sense of our despair_

Draco Malfoy stepped up to the podium to loud cheers and applause. He serenely waited for the crowd to quiet down. When they finally did, he spoke simply, "It was not I who defeated the Dark Lord. It was not my knife that killed him. I was not the one to save your world. This-" He spread his arms wide to encompass everything; the rebuilt stadium, the cheerful people, "It was someone else who did all this. I did this for him; not for you, not for me, but for him. So please do not cheer for me. Cheer for Harry Potter."

Draco turned around and waved his wand at the huge picture of himself that had been hanging behind him. Black began to run into the blond, the perfectly groomed hair became unruly and messy, gray eyes became green, glasses appeared, and-- on the forehead was traced a scar shaped like a bolt of lightning.

Then, in front of the astonished crowd, in front of all the witches and wizards watching this on their wizavision, the proud and dignified Draco Malfoy knelt and bowed down low to Harry Potter. The whole wizarding saw the way the sunlight shone on his hair, saw the trembling of his lips, saw the single tear make its glistening trail down his cheek, saw his lips move. But no one heard the words he whispered, the mantra that had saved him all this time, the last words of his sworn enemy.

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Be strong. Believe._

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Everything is gonna be alright_

_Be strong. Believe._

_Think about the love inside the strength of heart_

_Think about the heroes saving life in the dark_

_Think about the chance I never had to say_

_Thank you for giving up your life that day._


End file.
